PRO14 moves to clear up confusion surrounding Champions Cup play-off qualification situation
PRO14 Rugby have clarified the situation around scheduling and make-up of the Play-Off game to decide the seventh and potential eighth Champions Cup qualifier(s).
The tournament rules state that the seventh Champions Cup place from the Guinness PRO14 will be decided in a play-off game between the fourth-placed teams from Conference A and B or between the highest-ranked eligible teams who have not automatically qualified. In this instance a play-off would take place between Ospreys Rugby (A4, 58 points) and Scarlets (B4, 52 points).
However, should Leinster Rugby win the Champions Cup on May 11 this would open up the possibility that the Guinness PRO14 could earn an eighth place in the 2019/20 Champions Cup competition.
In such circumstances, the tournament rules state that the highest-ranked team not automatically qualified for the Champions Cup will be awarded the seventh PRO14 place, in this case Ospreys would be automatically entered into next season’s Champions Cup.
The eighth place would then be decided by a play-off game between the two-highest ranked teams remaining who have not qualified, in this case that would see Cardiff Blues host Scarlets by virtue of the Blues’ higher points total.
Many thanks to all of you who have been in touch this week to enquire about tickets for the @ChampionsCup Cup play off game v @scarlets_rugby
Due to the complex nature of the qualification process across 3 competitions, we await clarification around the proposed fixture.
1/2
— Ospreys (@ospreys) May 1, 2019
What Happens Next?
Should Leinster Rugby lose the Champions Cup Final then Ospreys will host Scarlets in the European play-off game on Saturday, May 18, at 19:45 with the winner qualifying for the Champions Cup. The game will be broadcast live on Premier Sports.
What Happens if Leinster retain the Champions Cup?
The European play-off game would not be able to take place until Wednesday, May 29 at the earliest because of the live permutations surrounding the potential eighth Champions Cup place PRO14 would receive an extra place if all of the Challenge Cup semi-finalists qualify automatically through their in positions the Premiership and Top 14.
ASM Clermont Auvergne are highly likely to qualify for automatically via the Top 14 while La Rochelle, Harlequins and Sale Sharks are all at the lower reaches of the qualifying places from their domestic leagues.
Currently Harlequins and Sale Sharks occupy the final two automatic places from the Premiership and ASM Clermont Auvergne and La Rochelle occupy the second and sixth automatic places, respectively, in the Top 14. The final round of the Premiership takes place on May 18 and the final round of the Top 14 takes place on May 25.
Should either of La Rochelle, Sale Sharks or Harlequins fail to qualify for the Champions Cup via their league position then Ospreys and Scarlets will Play Off for the seventh place as previously stated.
Should all of the aforementioned Challenge Cup teams qualify automatically then Ospreys will receive a place in next season’s Champions Cup while Cardiff Blues will then face Scarlets in a play-off game for the eighth qualifying place as per PRO14 tournament regulations.
Cardiff Blues would have home advantage for such a game based upon their higher total of match points (54) compared to Scarlets (52). In that case a date of Wednesday, May 29 with an evening kick-off time will be confirmed.
WATCH: The RugbyPass documentary taking you behind the scenes at the 2018 PRO14 final
Comments on RugbyPass
We’re building a bridge but can't agree where the river is.
2 Go to commentsfirst no arms shoulder or helmet tackle into his rib cage is going to be so very painful even to watch. go back to RU mate.
1 Go to commentsBulls by 5. Plus another 50.
3 Go to commentsJohan Goosen avatar. Cute. Surely someone at RP knows how to do a google image search?
3 Go to commentsCan’t these games play a little earlier? Asking for a friend.
3 Go to commentsIt’s impressive that we can see huge stadiums with attendance in the 40 000 to 50 000 region. It shows how popular this competition is becoming. What is even more impressive is the massive growth in broadcast viewership. The URC is one of the two best leagues in the World, the other being the Top14.
7 Go to commentsChristie is not Sottish, like the majority of the Scotland team.
2 Go to commentsHold the phone, decline over-rated. Is it a one game, dead cat bounce or the real thing? Has the Penney dropped? Stay tuned.
45 Go to commentsTotally deserved win for the Crusaders Far smarter than the Chiefs who seem to be avoiding the basics when it matters Hotham showed them what was missing and Hannah seems a real find - a tad light but that can be fixed over time
8 Go to commentsGreat insight into the performance culture with Sarries and I predict Christie will be a fixture in the Scotland team now for some time to come. However, he is slightly missing his own point around Scotland “being soft” when he cites physicality examples in defence of that slight. The issue is much closer to the example he referenced around feeling off before a game but being told “it doesn’t matter, you can still play well” by Farrell. Until Scotland can get their psyche in that square, they will carry on folding under extreme pressure…
2 Go to comments> We are having to adapt, evolve and innovate more than when we were in Super Rugby where there was only really one style that everybody had to play to gain the most success. Have = able to? Interesting what that one style might be? I thought SA sides still had bad tours now, or at least bad schedule, months away? Those extra few hours flights have to be a killer though, no surprise to see their sides doing so badly at the start of the season each year. I wouldn’t enjoy that unfairness as a supporter.
7 Go to commentsThe problem for NZ, and Aus, is they ripped up the SR model and lost a massive chunk of revenue that hasn’t been replaced. Don’t forget SA clubs went North because they were left with no choice, Argy unceremoniously binned and Japan cast adrift. Now SR wasn’t perfect, far from it, but they’ve jumped into something without an effective plan, so far, to replace what they’ve lost. The biggest revenue potential now lies in Japan but it won’t be easy or quick to unlock, they are incredibly insular in culture as a nation. In the meantime, there is a serious time bomb sitting under SH rugby and if it happens then the current financial challenges will look like a picnic. IF the Boks follow their provincial teams and head north then it’s revenue meltdown. Not guaranteed to happen but the status quo is a very odd hybrid, with the Boks pointing one way and the clubs pointing the other way. And for as long as that remains then the threat is real.
45 Go to commentsI think Etene has had some good tuition, likely while at the Warriors to be a professional that helped his rugby jump, but he was certainly thrown in the deep end way too early. Should have arguably 20 less SR caps, and therefor a way better record that he does at his age, but his development would have been fast tracked by the need to satiate his signing away from league. Again, credit to him and others that he has done it so well. Easy to fall over under that pressure in the big leagues like that but he kept at it when I myself wasn’t sure he was good enough.
1 Go to commentsAwesome story. I wonder what a bigger American (SA) scene might have mean for Brex.
1 Go to comments“Johnny McNicholl and the Crusaders” save a Penney. Who has been in camp this week and showed them how to play?
8 Go to commentsSo, reports of the Crusaders’ demise / terminal decline are perhaps just - slightly - premature/exaggerated…? 🤔 Will we see a deep-dive into that by the estimable Rugbypass scribes, and maybe one or two mea culpas? Thought not.
8 Go to comments1. The Chiefs are rudderless without DMac, which enhances his AB chances 2. Chiefs pack are powderpuffs. The hard men arent there anymore 3. They had their golden title chance last yr and wont threaten this yr. Gone in second round of playoffs.
8 Go to commentsHonestly, why did you have to publish such a foolish article the day they play us? 😂
45 Go to comments> They are not standalone entities. They are linked to an amateur association which holds the FFR licence that allows the professional side to compete in the league. That’s a great rule. This looks like the chicken or egg professional scenario. How long is it going to be before the club can break even (if that is even a thing in French rugby)? If the locals aren’t into well it would be good to se them drop to amateur level (is it that far?). Hope they can reset from this level and be more practical, there will be a time when they can rebuild (if France has there setup right).
1 Go to commentsWhat about changing the ball? To something heavier and more pointed that bounces unpredictably. Not this almost round football used these days.
35 Go to comments